Media As An Subdiction : Is Social Media An Addiction

Many people can remember the early days of social media, chatting with friends and family and playing simple games to pass the time. Today, social media has turned into an essential of American culture. Everywhere people go today, we are surrounded by social media. People have begun to increase their time spent chatting on places like Facebook, Twitter, and many others. In today's society, the changing and advancing social media of the modern age, specifically online entertainment, seems to be bringing people to the point of addiction at an astonishing rate.

Social media has many negative effects linked to teenagers today. Research has shown that social media has a harsh impact on the mental health of its users. This research suggests that social media can cause depression. Highly idealized representations of peers on social media may create elicit feelings of envy and the belief that others lead happier, more successful lives (Chowdhry). Although depression cannot be linked to one specific cause, there are many different factors that can contribute to it. With this being said, individuals will compare themselves negatively to others on social media because they believe other individuals sharing content are living better lives than they are. This will result in people feeling bad about themselves. Another impact social media has on mental health is that it is addictive. Although social media addiction is not a formal clinical diagnoses, it is reasonable to say that many people spend a lot of time on social media. Researchers have suggested that the excessive use of online social networking is particularly problematic to young people. It is claimed that those people who are addicted experience symptoms similar to those who suffer from addictions to substances and other behaviours. As stated above, although social media addiction is not classified as a formal clinical diagnoses, it has been compared to those who suffer from far more serious addictions. In addition to other impacts social media has on mental health, it can severely impact the self-esteem of those who are on social media platforms. Social media can have a negative effect on the

Andreassen, Pallesen, Griffiths (2015) argues the implications of social media on a person(s), being addictive habits which affect self-esteem and moods. They did a study proving over 23,500 participants (Andreassen et al. 2015) showed addictive behaviour; of which it was most associated with

Though it started out as a way to keep in touch with friends and family members, social media has become an addiction for so many people. In fact, many people make it a point to detox from social media at least once or twice a year. Many people check their social media apps before

I agree with everything what Simon Sinek says, we easily allow social media to take advantage of us. We want to always take that short cut to becoming happy, but since it’s a short cut it only lasts for a short amount of time. We can easily become addicted to social media because of dopamine that feeling of feeling good easily makes it hard to break of the addiction. He also said that we are growing in a generation with lower self-esteem, because of social media and the lack of good leadership in this world. For example I used to be honestly addicted to social media, I would come back to Facebook or Instagram as soon I had the chance to see how many likes I got. The second I started to use Instagram and Facebook less, I started to feel less

The study pointed out that students are addicted to social media and digital devices including smartphones, computers, and MP3 players in the similar way of drug and alcohol addictions. They do not feel comfortable without texting. Likewise, without connecting with media, students feel disconnected to their friends and family. Moreover, they feel extremely anxious when they have less information than other people. However, the study shows that there are not many students watching TV, reading newspaper, listening to radio, or checking mainstream media to update news. They tend to prefer to receive news via narration and personal interactions. This article will be helpful in supporting my argument in my research paper because the information can be used to support my stand, which is how social media affects mental health and social behaviors.

The selected theories and concepts for this research will be used in designing the questions and setting the measures for the questionnaire and the interviews as well. In addition, the theories and behavioral models will be used in analyzing and better understand the data obtained and in setting up the results of the research.

This study relied on survey data and was cross-sectional research. Future research could include a qualitative approach in order to better understand the levels of addiction to social media, and the severity of mental health amongst participants with depression and anxiety.

The most genuine complication of social media is addiction. A reporter on Salem health characterized that text messaging is no longer the biggest teenage obsession, and enormous phone bills from lengthy phone calls are no longer the biggest doubts for parents. These teenage addictions still remain, but in our generation and in analogy to the Facebook mania, it’s quite insignificant. Facebook addiction is advised to be a disorder driven by a craving. Not being able to access Facebook creates anxiety among fanatics. It is one of the most prominent social networking sites and has over one billion users without exception. People detach themselves from family and friends. Further symptoms of Facebook addiction have been related with needy sleep patterns. Researchers have also attempted to evaluate certain personality traits to the obsession. Being in touch with friends and family might clarify the logic why people are unreasonably obsessed.

In today’s society almost every individual has some type of social media, whether it is Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, or Twitter, People have accustomed to utilizing these types of social media and it has become part of their life and daily use. According to the essay “Students Addicted to Social Media” by the International Center for Media and Public Agenda, the study from the University of Maryland claims “American college students today are addicted to media” (Signs of Life in the USA 403). The university discovered that when these students are restricted from using media it is similar in terms of drug and alcohol addictions. During the study that the university conducted, students discuss how boring it is without media and how it gives them anxiety about not receiving information through social media. Other students claimed that texting and IM'ing gives them comfort and if they do not have these items then they feel alone and isolated from the world ( Signs of Life in the USA 404). Students are not the only ones who have an addiction of media but also parents and non-students. However, the International Center is accurate in some aspects and the responses students gave are very relatable which some people can agree with.

It’s a serious addiction and it can fuel your snacking habits as you browse late into the night. Not to mention it can affect your sleeping patterns, which can induce stress and encourage fatty food indulgences.

In order for the objective of this study to be attained, the following research questions were used as a guide:

Every day students show the addiction to social media. Social media addiction is when people cannot go a long time without going on social media. An example of social media addiction would be a kid constantly checking their snapchat every few minutes for long periods of time. Social media addictions is a very important and serious topic, which also comes with its effects on people. Some include, health risks to the brain, social issues, and behavioral issues.

Method: Primary research was done in two steps.  Qualitative Research – Depth Interview Method  Quantitative Research – Survey Method

A sample questionnaire was used to perform the primary research needed for this project. This questionnaire, with a